3 Words, 8 Letters
by alluringmelodies
Summary: From toddlers to teens, it was obvious that they cared for each other as more than friends. But do they notice it themselves? "3 words, 8 letters. That's all I need."
1. Dynamic Duo

Seconds.

Minutes.

Hours.

Days.

Weeks.

Months.

Years.

Time is of the essence. With time, the people surrounding them were able to witness the blossoming of two particular people.

The sky was perfectly clear this morning with the perfect shade of blue painted against it. The fledglings were flapping their wings, hesitantly, but with conviction that today would be their day to fly with their flock up in the sky.

It was a normal day for a certain brunette as she hustled out of her room frantically to meet up with a particular raven haired boy.

She scrambled down the stairs with her school bag in tow while managing to button up her blouse. As a tradition, Yukihara Sakura stood at the bottom of the stairs waiting for her daughter.

"Morning Mom!," the brunette said enthusiastically.

Yukihara placed her arms on her hips, "Maybe you should start waking up earlier so that you don't have to cause a ruckus in your room every morning." She reprimanded.

The brunette merely grinned, unaffected by the typical scolding, "I know, I know."

She walked into the kitchen expecting to see the raven haired boy sitting at her seat on the dinner table.

"He came by this morning," Yukihara explained, "He came by and told me to give you this." She gave the brunette a piece of ripped paper with the words "King and Queen" written in the messy, yet legible scrawling that she was all too familiar with.

The brunette simply smiled, "I'll see you after school mom." She leaned forward to kiss her cheek, another tradition of theirs.

Yukihara smiled in return as she watched her beautiful, sixteen year old daughter walking out of the house. She didn't know what "King and Queen" meant, but it was obvious that it meant something special to her daughter.

Everyone was walking the opposite direction of her, but the brunette ignored the confused looks of the by passers. After all, she had a place to be, a person to meet.

"King and Queen" was just a nickname for a park that two children created years ago. But to her, it was a promise.

_"I'm going to rule this world one day as King!" the raven boy exclaimed._

_"I'll rule beside you as Queen!" the brunette said._

* * *

She arrived at the park and scanned her surroundings for a particular person.

It wasn't that hard, to be honest. He was sitting on a bench and his dark attire stuck out easily in an area where only light colors were at.

She was about to open her mouth to shout out for him but closed it promptly. With a devious smile, she tiptoed to his location. As she got closer, she noticed that he was sleeping. His long, dark eyelashes, which could make any girl jealous, were resting peacefully. He was breathing softly and evenly.

She stood in front of expectantly, waiting for him to sense her presence and wake up but he never did. Frowning slightly, she did the next best thing. Taking a big breath of air, she leaned down close to his ear and shouted, "WAKE UP!"

She chortled as he jerked awake, his eyes widening quickly. He looked up and saw who was standing in front of him with a smug look.

His face soured as she settled next to him on the bench, "Why are you here?"

She simply smiled at him, "You looked lonely and it's not fun being lonely."

Once he heard her say that, he smiled and his anger on being awaken rudely quickly dissipated. After all, that phrase was what started their friendships ten years ago.

Ten years ago.

"_We have a new addition to our class today, children!" Ms. Komoto exclaimed, as she gestured to the little girl with brown pigtails with a strawberry backpack in front of her. _

The whole class looked at her with large, expectant eyes.

"_Go on," Ms. Komoto urged, "Introduce yourself to the class." _

The little girl took a deep breath and shouted, _"Hello! My name is Mikan Sakura, and I would like to be all of your friends!" she half bowed. _

She stood back up and looked at the class nervously.

Suddenly someone scraped their chair back and stood up.

"_Hi Mikan! I'm Anna; I hope that we can become good friends."_ She smiled.

Mikan squealed happily, as the whole class, minus one person swarmed around her throwing their names towards her.

It was now playtime as Mikan played with the other children. In just an hour, she had gotten along fine with her classmates, which indicated her ability to socialize easily.

They were playing in a circle while exchanging toys with each other.

"_I want that barbie!"_

"_Play doll house with me!"_

" _EW COOTIES!"_

Mikan looked around the classroom and saw a boy playing quietly by himself outside of the circle_. _

_Curious, she asked Anna,_ _"Why isn't he playing with us?"_

_She shrugged, "He never wants to play with us, I'm not sure why."_

_Mikan pursed her lips and stood up. "Where are you going, Mikan?"_

"_To be friends with him."_

Mikan walked confidently over to where the raven haired boy was sitting.

She stood over him expectantly, waiting for him to notice her presence.

But he still didn't look up towards her, _"Hi! My name is Mikan and I hope we can become friends." She said excitedly. _

No reply. The boy only continued playing with his robot without paying attention to her.

"_What's your name?" Mikan asked, unaffected by the silent treatment. _

"_What are you playing with?"_

"_Why don't you like playing with the other people?"_

"_Why-" _

The boy cut her off as he finally faced her with a scowl, _"You talk too much."_

She had a frown of her own as she defended herself, _"You never answered me!"_

The boy turned back to his robot, _"They're too loud. I don't like loud people."_ He said, hoping to drive the girl away.

Mikan suddenly walked away, leaving the boy somewhat flustered.

He didn't expect her to stop talking so soon, not that he was complaining though.

Couple minutes later, a shadow loomed over him. When he looked up, he saw the same girl but this time with a bunch of toys her little arms could get a hold of. She threw all of the toys on the floor and sat down next to him without a word.

She started to play with her toys in silence next to the boy.

Her actions were alarming to the boy. She wasn't talking loudly, she wasn't bombarding him with questions, and she wasn't even talking to him!

"_Why are you here?"_ the boy asked as curiosity finally got a hold of him.

The girl looked at him with large, sparkly hazel eyes. _"You looked lonely, and it's not fun being lonely."_ She said simply, and redirected her attention back to her toys.

The boy watched as she played with her dolls from the side. Silence was nice, but it was nice that somebody was next to him. He realized that she wasn't so bad when she wasn't talking so much.

"_Natsume." He muttered._

"_Hm?" She looked at him, "What did you say?"_

"_Natsume." He repeated, "That's my name."_

_Mikan beamed, "Nice to meet you Natsume, I hope we can become friends."_

Her hope became a reality because as the years went by they became closer friends, best friends actually. When they found out that their parents were friends, it was no surprise that they would become even closer.

Natsume understood her weaknesses and Mikan likewise.

Along with their weaknesses, they discovered their strong points. They helped each other become a better person.

They were such polar opposites, but maybe that's how they managed to keep a decade long friendship alive.

She was the loud and sociable one.

He was the quiet and distant one.

Complete opposites but they complimented each other perfectly.

They were the dynamic duo, as people called them.

* * *

Mikan swung her legs beneath the bench, "Do you plan on coming to school today?" she asked.

He looked at her lazily, "I don't know, do you?"

She gave him one of her signature smiles that could blow anyone off of their feet, "Not really… but we shouldn't skip any more days. There are so many tests to take recently." She pouted.

From a tender young age, they were both precocious children. They were always the top two in their class, except for the day of their entrance exam to Alice Academy.

He knew that Mikan was always invincible; she never let anything stop her from getting what she wants. The day of the entrance exams was a hectic one.

Natsume strode in confidently into their classroom knowing that this test was going to be a breeze for him. He looked around for Mikan and looked at his watch.

_8:50 AM._

Ten minutes before the exam starts. He knew that Mikan always had trouble with time, but she was never late. She was just never early, never late; she always arrived right on the dot.

Natsume took his seat, and was impatient to get this thing over with. The minutes were going by, but he didn't let it faze him. But when it noticed it was 8:59, he began to worry.

_9 AM. _

The test proctor rubbed his hands together, "Okay students. We will begin the test now-"

"There's still one more person." Natsume interrupted.

The proctor frowned, "The test waits for no one," he said, as the door flung open showing a flustered Mikan.

"Sorry for being late." Mikan rasped softly.

Natsume frowned, something was wrong with her. Her voice isn't as loud as it usually is.

"Just take a seat. We were just about to start."

Natsume waved his arm up, "There's a seat here."

Mikan smiled at him, "Thanks for saving me a seat." She whispered quietly as she got situated.

He said nothing in reply, only nodding back towards her. From close up, Natsume could tell her that her eyes weren't as bright as usual and her cheeks were a deep shade of red.

"Are you okay?" Natsume whispered.

"No talking, young man. The test has been issued. Any talking during the test will only revoke your score." The proctor reprimanded as he walked by their aisle.

Stupid proctor.

Mikan nodded slightly and mouthed, "I'm okay."

She began working on her test. Math was the first section. It was a good thing that she and Natsume decided to go over math the longest last night in their preparation for the test this morning.

First question.

_If f(x)= _ _-8x+15, what is the value of x if f(x) 0 ?_

Mikan took a deep breath but her chest felt heavy as she began coughing.

She tried her best to answer the question but nothing was going through her mind. She _knew_ that she knew how to solve it. Something like this was easy for her. She coughed even more, feeling phlegm in her throat as she made a disgusted face.

Natsume looked at her worriedly; she was still on the first question after 15 minutes. "You sure you okay?" he mouthed.

"Never better." She mouthed back.

_Screw this question_, she thought.

She went onto the next one.

_What is the equation of the line through the points (2,8) and (-4,-1)_

Mikan rubbed her temples.

_This is a terrible time to blank out, Mikan. Focus!_ She told herself.

Natsume noticed her breathing became heavier and that she started to sweat a little bit.

Then it all came to him: the flustered cheeks, the coughing, heavy breathing, and the sweating. Mikan was sick but she still came in her state.

He nudged his elbow, "You're sick." He mouthed.

She looked at him with a blank expression and shrugged and continued staring at her test.

Time was passing and soon, the hour and a half that they were allowed for the test was coming close.

"5 more minutes." The proctor called out.

Natsume didn't need another 5 minutes; he finished with plenty of time to spare. He spent his remaining time watching Mikan struggle her way through the test. When the 5 minute mark was called out, she just dropped her pencil and laid her head on the table, closing her eyes. He peered over her shoulder and saw that she did a half-assed job on it. A monkey could have done better. She didn't even bother writing her name.

Natsume knew how much she wanted to get into Alice Academy, but he knew that she couldn't do anything about her sickness. So he did the next best thing.

"Alright, time's up. Pass up your papers."

Quickly erasing his name and replacing it with hers, he passed it up. He then pulled Mikan's paper under her arm and quickly wrote in his name before passing it up.

"You guys are free to go now." The proctor said before leaving the room.

Natsume touched her forehead lightly and pulled back immediately. It was scorching hot. Was this how she was during the whole test?

Everyone scuffled out of the room, leaving the two of them behind.

"Mikan, it's time to go."

She still didn't open her eyes, "Let me sleep for a while." She answered back muffled.

When Mikan woke up, she was in her room with a damp towel on her forehead.

She looked around; the first thing she noticed was Natsume's dark raven hair beside her. The clock on her wall blinking in red LEDs showed that it was 10 PM.

_10 PM? _She thought.

She didn't remember going back home, all she remembered was feeling terrible during the test…

THE TEST!

She quietly whimpered to herself, "I probably did a terrible job… I'm not going to get into Alice Academy now."

Natsume stirred awake once he heard her quiet voice, "You're awake now?" he asked groggily.

She nodded.

"You should stop eating so much, it was hard work carrying you home, piggy." He added with a smirk.

"Why'd you carry me home…?" She asked confusedly.

"You blacked out right after the test."

"Oh."

"So I took you home," he continued, "I was hoping your mom was going to be here so she could take care of you, but she's working late tonight, which is why I'm still here." He added.

She tried sitting up to look at him, only to be forced to lie back down again.

"Just make things easier for yourself and continue lying down." He commanded, taking the damp towel off her forehead and replaced it with a new, freshly damp one.

"Natsume," she whispered.

"What."

"The test. I did horrible on the test."

"I know."

"I won't be able to get into Alice Academy. And you helped me prepare for it so much." She said sadly.

"Don't worry, everything will work out for you." He reassured her.

"How?" she mumbled, already feeling the urge to go back to sleep.

"Don't worry, just worry about getting better."

Mikan already drifted off into her slumber, "It scares me when you're not feeling well." He added quietly.

The next week, all of the test takers returned to the room to receive their scores, and to know whether or not they were accepted into Alice Academy.

The students crowded over the bulletin board that had the score report.

Mikan knew it was futile to go and look at the board, knowing that she scored dead last.

"_Of course, she would get top marks."_

"_Mikan's so smart."_

"_It's really surprising to not see Natsume's name on the top though."_

"_I know! He's like, dead last."_

Mikan's ears pricked when she heard what the people were saying. When the students cleared away from the board, she approached it cautiously.

"…Top marks…?" she asked aloud, "That's impossible."

She continued looking at the bottom of the page, trying to find her name, until a finger pointed to number one.

"You really are a genius, getting a near perfect score when you were so sick." Natsume smiled.

She stared at what Natsume was pointing at.

_Mikan Sakura 98/100_

"This is impossible!" She spluttered, "There's got to be a mistake, I could not have gotten this score that day."

"But you did."

She stared at Natsume. Something was fishy about him.

"If I'm number one, where are you ranked?"

He shrugged indifferently, "Somewhere."

She narrowed her eyes at him before looking for his name. She went down the whole list, only to find his name at the very bottom, dead last.

_Natsume Hyuuga 5/100_

"YOU! YOU SWITCHED OUR-" Mikan shouted.

Natsume clamped his hand over her mouth, "Shh."

She removed his hand, "Why'd you do that, Natsume?" she frowned, "Your parents are going to be so upset once they find out."

"You wanted to get in to Alice Academy more than I did."

"But we were supposed to go together! That was our plan!" she said exasperatedly.

"Don't worry, we are." Natsume calmly replied.

She raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?" she asked, "You're being awfully calm about this."

"My parents already know my score, so they demanded that I was to be allowed to take a retake."

"And they allowed you too?" Mikan gasped.

Alice Academy was a strict school with even stricter policies. They never allow excuses.

"Are you forgetting who my parents are?" he said smugly, "Money makes the world go round."

His parents are one of the majorly successful business tycoons in Tokyo, just like how Mikan's parents were.

At that moment, a man came up to the bulletin board and posted up a new score board.

_Updated Score sheet:_

_Natsume Hyuuga 100/100_

_Mikan Sakura 98/100_

She shook her head and laughed lightly, "You're unbelievable…"

* * *

Now here they are, already in their 3rd year at Alice Academy, and they're still the top rankers in their class.

"If you're worried about missing tests, why don't you go to class then and leave me here to sleep?" he sarcastically said.

"But if I leave you here, it's going to worry me even more that _you _aren't taking your tests." She wailed, "Stop being so lazy."

After all these years, she was still the loud person he knew. But her heart still remained pure, always caring for her loved ones more than herself.

He stood up and handed out his arm to her, "Come on, let's go to school since you want to go so badly."

She giggled and took his hand as he helped her up.

"I don't understand why you always try to act so tough around me, Natsume. I mean, you always go with what I say in the end." She smiled.

His face soured, "Only because if I don't you'll start complaining and whining like a brat."

She laughed as they started walking towards Alice Academy, "I only act like that because it's fun to see your reactions."

He rolled his eyes, "I hate you."

"You love me." She said in a sing-song tone.

"I know." He said simply.

She smiled to herself as they continued walking to the Academy. As soon as it was in their sight, she tugged on his arm and started running.

"Why are you running?!" Natsume exclaimed as he ran beside her, "It's not like we're going to be late or anything."

She didn't respond and only released her hold on him once they reached the gate.

"Look! Our friends are already there, and they're waiting for us." She beamed.

"Guys!" she waved frantically.

Anna, Hotaru, Ruka, Koko, Nonoko, and Tsubasa all looked and saw a very happy Mikan and a very bitter Natsume trailing her.

Once the two of them reached the circle, immediate chatter ensued.

"Did you wake up late again, Mikan?" Hotaru asked.

"Of course." She said easily, while laughing.

Natsume flicked her head, "That's not something to be proud of, dummy."

She pouted as the rest of their friends started laughing.

_Ah, the dynamic duo indeed._

* * *

**_A/N:_ I know that I'm working on the Blood right now, but I couldn't sleep until 5 AM this morning and I came up with like a new story plot... I'm not even sure if it's going to work out but yeah LOL**

**Thank you for reading and reviews are appreciated **

**Also, I do not own Gakuen Alice and its credits solely belong to ****Tachibana Higuchi.**

_-M_


	2. Escorts

A/N: Thank you to those that have taken their time to read and review this story, it really means a lot to me :)  
Also, in the previous chapter, someone had told me that I used Yukihara Sakura as Mikan's mother's name, omg. That is a mistake LOL I didn't bother checking what her name was and I genuinely thought that that was her name for some reason...

Sorry, but I'll just keep it as is. LOL.

* * *

It was now lunch time as Mikan, Hotaru, Anna, and Nonoko sat around their own lunch table eating lunch.

"So, Mikan." She started, waving her fork towards her, "Did anything happen between you and Natsume today?" she asked, wagging her eyebrows.

Mikan reached for her juice, "You ask me that every week, Anna. Nothing is ever going to happen between us." She snorted.

"Do you want it to?" Nonoko quiety asked.

"Nope." Mikan replied shrugging without missing a beat.

All three of the girls but Mikan snorted and continued eating their lunch while moving onto another topic to discuss.

.

From a corner of his eye, Natsume could see where Mikan was sitting.

Noticing this, "Why don't you just go sit with her, man?" Tsubasa joked.

"And then when you sit with her maybe your love will blossom." Koko snickered.

He and Tsubasa then faced each other with a grin and high-fived each other.

"Idiots." Natsume muttered.

Tsubasa stood up, and gathered his tray into his arms.

"Where are you going?" Ruka asked.

"Well, just because Natsume isn't going to sit with Mikan doesn't mean I won't." He winked.

Natsume turned to face him and narrowed his eyes, "What are you planning now?" he asked warily.

"Don't worry, Natty, I am planning nothing." He said innocently.

Annoyance flashed through Natsume's eye and everybody at the table noticed it.

Ruka laughed nervously, "Talk to you later, Tsubasa."

Tsubasa grinned before casually walking over to where the girls were sitting at.

"Oh, and then you _cannot _believe what he said-"

"What was he saying?" Tsubasa asked before plopping beside Mikan.

Anna sighed, "He said nothing since you're here now."

"Aw, come on. I can like, totally act like one of the girls." He joked in a high-pitched voice.

Mikan laughed, "You are so dumb."

Tsubasa flashed a charming smile, "Only for you."

She looked down and continued eating hoping to hide the blush from her face.

But it didn't go unnoticed by Natsume.

He stood up to walk over to that table himself only to stop in his tracks when he saw that Mikan and Tsubasa stood up together to go somewhere else.

.

"I can't believe you forgot that today was the first meeting for the planning committee." Tsubasa said.

She shrugged, "Sometimes I forget that I'm even in it."

_They were in Natsume's room that afternoon a month ago, and Mikan made herself comfortable on his bed by lying on her tummy, legs crossed up in the air and her arms propped up on his pillow._

_"Hey Natsume," she started._

_"What." He said from his couch where he was laying on comfortably as he read his manga._

_"Should I try to be in the planning committee for the Gala this year?"_

_"I don't know, do you want to be in it?" he replied, not bothering to look up._

_"I don't know, that's why I'm asking you!" she cried out, "Natsume! Decide for me!"_

_He sighed and put down his manga. This was such a typical Mikan response, she was always so indecisive._

_"Well, if you were able to join, would you have a fun time?" he asked first._

_"Of course, Tsubasa is going to be in it this year too!"_

_Natsume disregarded the second half of her answer, "I heard that you have to devote a lot of time for it. Can you manage your time well?"_

_Mikan pursed her lips thoughtfully, "I don't know. But it sounds like a challenge, and I like challenges." She laughed._

_He chuckled in response, "Then just apply and see if they'll accept you."_

_"But they only seem to accept 4th years, minus Tsubasa."_

_"Well, they're missing out on a great opportunity if they don't accept you. You're great at everything you do."_

_Mikan smiled and she relaxed her arms and fell face first onto his pillow._

_"Does that answer your question?" he asked._

_"Yep! You're the best."_

_Picking up his manga again, "I know."_

_._

"Are you kidding me? All of the current members didn't even have second doubts when they saw your application; it was a unanimous vote to let you join in."

Mikan smiled, "That's great to hear."

They were now at the door of where the committee meets, "After you." Tsubasa motioned after he opened the door.

"I was thinking that- Oh, come in, come in!"

"Sorry for being late." Mikan said apologetically.

The girl in front of Mikan flashed a beautiful smile, "It's alright. We weren't officially started yet. I'm Misaki, I take it that you're Mikan?"

"Yes, thank you for accepting me into this committee!" Mikan said enthusiastically as she looked around the room.

"You're so cute." Misaki said as she walked over to Mikan and pinched her cheeks.

Mikan made a face only to cause everyone to laugh.

"Now that everyone's here, let's begin." Misaki announced.

"I have high hopes that this year's Gala will be one of the best to go down in Alice Academy's history, which is why every one of us will have to work hard. Since there's an even amount of people this year, I was thinking of having pairs of groups work on a specific thing. What do you guys think?" She paused.

Everyone nodded in their agreement to the plan, "Great," Misaki continued on, "I was thinking that Yuri and Kaname could work on getting the theme for the Gala and the appropriate decorations for it. Is that okay?"

Yuri and Kaname shared a look before nodding, "That's fine." They chirped simultaneously.

"And then I and Akira will work on fundraising for the Gala." She said, "And I will not tolerate lazy behavior from you." She added.

Akira laughed nervously, "You got it, boss."

"And then lastly, since Mikan and Tsubasa get along well and seem to know a lot of people, I would like both of you to publicize this Gala. Try to get as many people to come because I also want to turn this Gala into a charity event as well." Misaki concluded.

Mikan beamed at Tsubasa, "Sounds like fun." She said.

"There's also one more thing I'd like to add," Misaki said, "The escorts."

Mikan repeated aloud, "Escorts?"

Misaki nodded, "Every year, all of the members of the planning committee are escorted down the long stairway towards the dance floor. And then they are the ones that start the dancing with a slow dance. That's how it usually works. Since there's an event amount of boys and girls this year, I don't think there should be a problem finding escorts. But that doesn't mean you guys can't find someone else to escort you."

She looked around the room, "Any questions?"

"When's the Gala?" Mikan asked.

"Hm, since we're nearing the end of January, we have five more months until the Gala, so then it's going to be near the end of June, right before we have summer vacation."

Mikan nodded, "I can't wait!"

The bell then rang, signaling the end of lunch.

"You guys can go now. Thanks for coming today." Misaki said happily.

Mikan gathered her things and went into the bustling hall ways to get to her next class, which was English.

"You didn't even wait for me." Tsubasa said, falling into step with her.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know you wanted me too." Mikan apologized.

He grinned, she was just too cute for her own good.

At that same moment, Natsume walked into class but from the corner of his eye he saw Mikan and Tsubasa together… again.

He gripped his things as he settled into his seat.

Mikan stood outside of her class, "Wait. Don't you have math right now?" she asked.

"Yup."

"Isn't it all the way across the campus…?"

"Yup."

"Then why are you here? You're going to be late!" she exclaimed as she tried to push him off to class.

"I just wanted to walk you." He smirked.

She rolled her eyes, "Go to class." She said before walking off into class.

She was halfway to her seat when he called out, "Meet me after school by the gate, Mikan!"

Everyone's eyes were on her when her name was mentioned; it was so embarrassing for her since she didn't enjoy being the main focus often. She made a shoo-shoo motion with her hands with only caused Tsubasa to laugh heartily.

She sat in her seat and turned to Natsume, "Hi!" she said happily.

"Hey." He replied monotone without looking at her.

Frowning slightly, "Are you okay?"

"Never better."

Mikan wanted to continue but she was interrupted when Narumi walked in starting the lesson.

50 minutes later, the bell rang as Natsume quickly walked out with Mikan trailing behind him.

"Natsume," she huffed, once she reached up to him, "What's your problem? You're acting like I did something bad towards you."

He said nothing in reply.

Frustrated, she walked faster to block him way.

He stepped right of her hoping to shake off but she blocked him again. He stepped left of her only to be blocked off again.

"What's your problem?" he asked.

"_My_ problem?" she repeated, "You're the one giving me the cold shoulder!" she exclaimed as she tried to forcefully push his shoulder.

He raised his eyebrows, unaffected by what she was doing, "You push like a 5 year old."

"You _act_ like a 5 year old." She retorted.

The halls emptied out as the last bell rang signaling the beginning of the last class of the day.

"Don't you have class to go to?" Natsume asked cooly.

She snorted, "You know I have free period, and so do you." She added.

"Then let me go home already."

"Not until you tell me what's bothering you."

He narrowed his eyes. Suddenly he faked right and ran past her left side.

She turned around in a hurry to run after him, "Natsume! You can't run away from me for forever you know, I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE."

He didn't lose his pace, "It won't do much for you if I won't let you in." he called out behind his shoulder.

She was beginning to get tired; he was just too fast for her. "I'M COMING BY TONIGHT WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT." She shouted after him.

She decided to just continue to walk out in that direction to wait for Tsubasa at the gate. "Stupid Natsume…" she muttered, "I didn't even do anything wrong, why is he acting like that?"

.

She had to wait a while before the bell rang but she didn't mind for she was a patient person. Suddenly a horde of students walked passed her, indicating the end of the school day.

A pair of hands abruptly blocked her vision.

"Guess who?" Tsubasa asked in a sing-song voice.

"Gee, I wonder who." She replied sarcastically.

Her vision returned back to normal, "You're no fun." He teased.

She smiled, "So what did you need me for?"

"Are you hungry?" he asked, ignoring her question.

"Not really."

"Then you can watch me eat." He said while taking her hand, "Come on."

But she still remained planted on the ground, "Tsubasa…"

"It won't take long, I promise." He reassured her.

They were seated by a window, so Mikan could see everything that was going on outside. Tsubasa was just finishing up his sandwich as he watched her look out the window.

"Did you know this is my favorite place to be when I'm having trouble with something?" he started.

"Really? What was the name of this place, I wasn't paying attention." She admitted sheepishly.

"Pocket's Sandwiches." He answered, "It's my family's restaurant."

"Oh." She said, and slapped her palm against her forehead, "Of course! I forgot that your family owns a restaurant."

He smiled at her reaction.

"Wait, you said you come when you have trouble with something… What are you having trouble with?" she asked worriedly.

"It's about the escort thing."

"Oh? What about it?"

"I wanted to ask this girl, but I don't think she would go with me."

"She's missing out." Mikan simply said.

He studied her for a minute, "Then how about it, Mikan. Are you going to miss out?"

She looked back at him and caught on, "Oh."

"See, I told you that she wouldn't go with me." He said smugly.

"It's not that I don't want to go with you, it's just I was planning on asking-"

"-Natsume, I know." He completed for her, "I just wanted to see if I could try."

She smiled guiltily at him, "Sorry-"

"Nope." He intervened, "I don't want to hear your apologies. Don't wound my ego anymore, Mikan." He said while exaggeratedly clutching his shirt.

She giggled, "I will do that."

"That's all I wanted to talk to you about," Tsubasa said, "You can leave if you want. Thanks for keeping me company for a bit while breaking my heart at the same time." He joked.

She stood up and gathered her things, "Anything for you." She winked before walking out. When she passed the window where they were sitting at she waved happily before walking off.

"What does she see in Natsume that I don't have…" he muttered to himself.

* * *

By the time Mikan got to Natsume's house, the sun was already beginning to set casting an orange-pinkish color over the sky. She rang the doorbell repeatedly, "I know you're home, Natsume! I see your car in the driveway!"

She continued ringing the doorbell until Kaoru Hyuuga opened the door.

"Sorry for the wait, Mikan. I told Natsume to open the door but for some reason he just wouldn't budge." She said, shaking her head. "That boy is just so stubborn sometimes."

Mikan snorted, "Tell me about it. Sorry for the inconvenience." She added apologetically as she stepped inside the house.

"You're never an inconvenience; make yourself at home, I have to go check up on something in my office now." She said with a smile before walking off in the opposite direction.

Mikan ran up the stairs and jerked open Natsume's door only to find him taking him nap on his bed.

She tiptoed over to him and sat on the side of his bed as quietly as possible before vigorously tapping him awake.

He lazily flicked one eye open and turned to his side.

"Wake up," Mikan complained, "Why are you ignoring me?"

She walked over to the other side where he was facing and sat down, with her back facing him. "I don't know what I did that made you give me the cold shoulder, but I'm sorry." She said slowly, picking out her words with precision.

"I don't like seeing you with Tsubasa." He muttered quietly.

"What?" she asked as she turned to face him.

"I know you heard me, I'm not repeating myself." He snapped.

She stared at him, "What's wrong with Tsubasa?" she asked finally, "Did you guys get into argument or something?"

"No, I just don't like seeing you with him."

She found this weird since Natsume never mentioned this to her before, but decided to pass if off as some time of boy-PMS type of thing.

"Well, I'm going to be spending more time with him since we're partners for publicizing the Gala." she explained, not noticing the mini scowl forming on his face.

"Is that where you went today during lunch?"

"Yeah! The seniors there are so nice and pretty!" Mikan gushed, "And there's this escort thing that they do for the members."

"Escort?" Natsume asked quizzically, fully awake now.

She nodded eagerly, "It's where all of the members have an escort, or like a date, and then they walk down the stairs together in front of everyone and they're the first ones on the dance floor. Doesn't that sound so cool?!"

"Not really." He said indifferently.

"I know you think it's cool," she said smugly, "And the reason why I'm telling you this is because I am hoping that you would be escort."

He raised his eyebrows, "And why would I do that?"

"Because you're the best-est person in the whole wide world." She answered with a grin.

He rolled his eyes, "You didn't even have to ask, I would've gone with you either way."

Mikan beamed, "Promise?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." He replied with a smirk.

"Are we okay now?" she asked gingerly.

"We'll always be okay." He answered with a smile.


	3. Reunion

As the next couple days went by, everything was the same, but the weather. It was now the beginning of February. The snowfall was decreasing, and the weather was steadily warming up due to the slight increase in the sun.

The final bell had just ringed as Natsume and Mikan were walking out together.

"Are you excited for tonight?" Natsume asked with his eyes twinkling.

"Of course I am! We haven't seen them for-"

"Mikan!" Tsubasa called out as he caught up to the pair.

"Oh, hi Tsubasa." She responded with a smile.

As he grinned back in response, "I was wondering, are you free tonight? We can go-"

"We have personal matters to attend to tonight." Natsume bluntly said, as he cut him off.

He turned to face Natsume squarely and smirked, "I'm pretty sure my invitation was directed towards Mikan."

"And _I'm _pretty sure I said the word 'we' which means Mikan and I."

Mikan laughed nervously as she could feel the tension between the two of them.

"Sorry Tsubasa, but my and Natsume's father are coming back from an oversea business trip tonight so we're having a welcome back party for them."

Tsubasa smiled tightly, "Right, of course. Family first." He added.

"Come on, Mikan. Let's go, the car is waiting." Natsume said, before tugging her arm.

She turned her head and smiled apologetically, "Maybe next time?"

Tsubasa nodded and smiled another tight smile as he watched Mikan's retreating figure walk farther and farther away from him.

* * *

"You didn't have to be so mean to him, you know." Mikan scolded, once they were both in the car.

"What are you talking about? I wasn't being mean." He said innocently.

She rolled her eyes, "You can fool anyone with your innocent act but me."

He turned to face her, "Oh? Maybe I should start being honest with you then." He smirked.

"Please do." She replied sarcastically.

"I don't like him." He said simply, "He acts as if he's king since his dad became acquainted with my family."

"Are you still hung up about that? It's been over a year already… even your mom said nothing happened."

"Of course nothing happened. As if I would allow that, I wouldn't let anything important to me get taken away from me." He said calmly as he shared a long glance with Mikan.

She broke away from the stare first and looked outside the window, "Their cars are already here!" she said excitedly as she changed the subject.

As the car pulled up to the driveway, Mikan opened the car door with excitement as she jumped out and bolted to the door of her house, leaving Natsume behind in the car.

"Dad? Mom?" she asked aloud.

"We're in the kitchen, dear."

She hurriedly walked into the kitchen and saw the person whom she had not seen for 3 months.

"Dad!" she cried out as she ran over to the pair of open arms.

When one meets Izumi Sakura for the first time, one would think that he would be an incapable man, a loser in other terms. On the contrary, he was a very able man. He was one of the leading tycoons in the business fields in Tokyo, but his power didn't limit to Tokyo only. Since he was an easy going person with an amiable personality, he was able to make allies in other parts of the world thus expanding their corporation on a global-wide level.

In addition to being an able businessman, he was also a loving father and husband.

He laughed loudly as he lifted Mikan off the ground in a bear hug, "How's my princess doing?"

"Stop it!" she squealed happily.

Natsume walked into the kitchen and leaned against the wall as he watched the family reunion, "So this is why she's so spoiled." He smirked.

Izumi only grinned at the statement and placed Mikan back on the floor.

He walked over to Natsume and clapped his hand firmly on his shoulder, "And how are you doing, Natsume?"

"Swell." He replied.

"Still a man of little words, huh?" Izumi teased, "Your old man went back to the house a while ago to get your mother before coming over here."

Natsume nodded and was about to utter a reply before a booming voice echoed through the house.

"The party has now started since I am here!"

"Honestly Kazuki…"

The Hyuuga family was now together in the kitchen along with the Sakura family.

Kazuki Hyuuga, just like Izumi, is another business tycoon while being a doting father and husband.

He went over to where his son was at and stared at him intently.

Knitting his eyebrows in confusion, "What's wrong?" Natsume asked, only to receive silence in return.

The staring continued for another minute until Kazuki suddenly let out a yell causing Natsume to jump up from sudden shock. But before Natsume could defend himself, his father slung his arm over his neck.

"BAHAH. You fell for it, just like you always did! At least you didn't pee your pants this time." Kazuki laughed heartily.

"You peed in your pants before?" Mikan asked amusedly.

"Damn old man, get off me." Natsume growled but with a smile nonetheless.

Kazuki continued to laugh heartily but conceded to Natsume's request, "Is Aoi not coming tonight?" he asked.

"She can't come, she says it's too hectic to leave her campus this week, but she sends you her regards." Natsume explained.

Kazuki sighed and pouted, "That girl… she works too hard these days."

"Aoi is amazing though!" Mikan piped.

"And I'm sure you will be amazing as well in a couple years, Mikan." He responded kindly.

"Now that we all had fun, let's continue to have fun but with food this time." The wives simultaneously said as they ushered the family to the dining table.

* * *

The two families were sitting around the Sakura's dining table while rubbing their stomachs since they had just finished the extravagant meal.

"We'll let you guys converse while we do our own things." Kaoru said before she and Yukihara left the room.

"Natsume, I know it may be a bit sudden, but you're nearing the end of your high school years, what do you plan to do once you finish high school?" Kazuki asked curiously.

"If possible, I'd like to have a chance of enlarging the Hyuuga name."

"How?"

"By taking over the company, of course." He said easily.

Izumi and Kazuki erupted into laughter, "You've got an ambitious boy there, Kazuki." Izumi commented.

"Of course, it runs in the family." Kazuki responded.

"What about you, Mikan?" Kazuki inquired, "What are your intentions?"

"Great minds must think alike." Mikan smiled at Natsume, "I, too, want to further the Sakura name globally by taking over the company one day, if dad lets me."

"Then how about it, Mikan. When your senior year starts, I will be personally instructing you on the business conceptions in the company and the various kinks in it." Izumi said.

"The same goes for you too, Natsume." Kazuki added.

* * *

And to the both of them, just reaching the opportunity of being able to be the potential heirs to the companies was not the only goal. Rather, it was reaching the success _together_.

The fathers continued to talk about miscellaneous topics so Mikan and Natsume decided to step out into the darkness outside.

Mikan gathered her hands behind her back as she tilted her head up towards the night sky glistening with stars, "It's kind of scary of what the future holds."

"A little bit."

"I hope that when we get old, we'll still be able to have reunions like these." Mikan laughed, "Then we can reminisce about the past!"

Natsume scoffed, "You always think about the future. Why don't you just think about the present?"

"You're boring." She said as she stuck her tongue out at him.

He chuckled in response, "Of course we'll be able to have reunions like these in the future. Nothing will stop them from happening."

"Promise?" Mikan raised her pinky.

"Promise." Natsume confirmed, wrapping his own pinky around hers.

_But everyone knows that some promises are just empty words in the end._

* * *

**A/N**: It makes me very happy when I read the reviews that you guys give me, so thank you for reading! :)

And I am sorry for the short chapter... but The Blood will be updating soon, yay!


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